Akeem Perry, chief training officer, department of public utilities, city of Cleveland

Rising Star (Finalist)

Cleveland's public utilities department used to be plagued by personnel and technical snags that led to service and billing problems.

Under Mayor Frank Jackson, new management and new technologies have been installed and the department is being transformed with new leadership and new, automated systems. Wait times on customer calls have been reduced, bills are delivered more accurately and timely and collection rates have improved.

Akeem Perry, now the department's chief training officer, has been an integral part of that improvement. He has designed internal training courses and trained employees on new customer care and billing systems, according to the nomination. Perry also created and implemented training modules for current employees and new hires in new automated meter reading technologies.

"Mr. Perry's tenacity and intellect have brought a sense of organizational structure to the training department," wrote Hernando Harge, the department's chief of human resources, in the nomination. Harge added that Perry's knowledge of adult learning and expertise in internal systems have been "a huge advantage to our entire office."

Perry is a graduate of Notre Dame College in South Euclid, earning both a bachelor of arts degree in 2009 and a master's in education in 2014. He joined the city's water division, a unit of the public utilities department, in 2012 as a billing services supervisor. He was promoted first to labor relations officer and then to talent development specialist before being named chief training officer in December 2016, supervising a team of talent development specialists and scheduling all internal training. In addition, he engages employees in health and wellness initiatives and "Lunch and Learn" sessions designed to promote personal and financial well-being.

"As the manager of training and employee programs it has been an honor to work with and mentor Akeem," wrote Denise McCray, manager of training and employee programs, in the nomination. "I have watched his progress and, as his manager, have great expectations for his future."

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